Following the official closure of Galbally Garda Station less than a month ago, people in the community are stepping up their policing efforts as a resident garda has agreed to patrol the village regularly, to ensure that crime rates do not soar because there is no operational garda station.

A community alert meeting was held in Galbally on Tuesday night, where it emerged that Garda Natasha Walsh, who is resident in Galbally Garda Station, but stationed in Bruff, said that she is a member of the community and wants to keep the village crime free – she will be doing regular patrols of the village and its surrounds.

This follows on from the announcement this week that Galbally Community Council are setting up an email address for people to report criminal incidents, burglaries and other related issues including vandalism, which has been rife of late.

People within the community can report any incidents to the Gardai in Bruff on 061-382940 and to put even more weight behind this community response to crime, they can also email the incident details to galballycommunity@gmail.com and the community council will forward this list to the Gardai at the end of each month.

A resident of Galbally told The Avondhu that just 16 incidents were reported in 2011, but he said that the number would be much bigger if smaller incidents which may not have been officially reported, were added to the figures. This kind of community logging system, he said, would keep track of that while the patrols would act as a deterrent for the wanton vandalism which has been taking place of late.

Chairman of Galbally Community Council, Patrick Kennedy told The Avondhu that at the last meeting, they took note of all acts of vandalism which had taken place recently.

He said it seems to be a small minority of youths who are responsible. “It’s the same people every weekend in the village going around acting like thugs.” He said that they are all acts of petty vandalism, but that when you put them together, they do build up and create a bad image for the village.

Mr Kennedy added that many of the youths live outside the village and so they travel in purposefully to cause damage and commit low level vandalism.

The acts of vandalism discussed at the meeting include last Halloween when rocks were thrown at two passing cars in separate incidents and in one case, one driver was injured. 

On January 24, a bike was stolen from the local chaplain and windows were broken in the local national school. In other incidents, Mr Kennedy said that flower pots from graves had been thrown in over the church wall. There were other incidents, hes aid, where bangers were thrown into letter boxes at the Garda station and community centre, in one case letters were destroyed.

Mr Kennedy said that people within the community should not have to put up with the wanton vandalism caused by a small minority of people and he hopes that the email address scheme will provide a forum for people to report minor incidents.